September 2006, Week 4
Samuel Betkowski
Samuel Betkowski wanted the camera to capture exactly what his eyes were seeing in this image. After several attempts of photographing the caterpillar, using his Fuji Finepix S7000 digital camera, the Brazilian veterinarian captured this silhouetted critter with a warm backlight.
September 2006, Week 3
Kim Steininger
On a blistery cold and windy winter day, Kim Steininger braved the elements for the sake of photography. “We were looking for a snowy owl that had been reported on the island. We didn’t find the owl, but we found these beautiful and entertaining ducks.” the network administrator from Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania says. These long-tailed ducks splashed through the waves on Island Beach State Park in New Jersey. Steininger made this image in waders with a Canon 1D with a 500mm lens.
September 2006, Week 2
Kevin Doxstater
Bald eagles reside in various places in North America—even Florida, where Doxtater lives, but on his first trip to Alaska, he was amazed by what he saw. “There are hundreds of bald eagles to be found on the Homer Spit in winter. ” Says the digital printer from Port Orange. Making several images of his experience, this one is a favorite, as the eagle is coming “directly at the camera after capturing the fish. ” Image was made with a Canon ES1D with a 70-200mm lens.
September 2006, Week 1
Ric Kessler
On a family vacation, Ric Kessler spent some time scoping out the scene in the nearby forest adjacent to the lake where the rest of his family fished. “I watched these plants for 3 days waiting for the light and plants to be together.” says Kessler, pest control manager from Ormond Beach, Florida. “When nature is allowed to flourish it surprises us with beauty in the smallest of ways. ” He snapped these flowers in a field with a Nikon D2X with a 200-400 VR zoom lens.
August 2006, Week 5
Richard Demler
The diamondback terrapin, known for diamond-shaped patterns on its shell, is making a comeback in some areas. This one made its appearance on the sandy beach of Orient Point, New York. “While walking along the beach” says Demler, from Somerset, New Jersey, “I noticed this terrapin on the sand. This being my first encounter with a terrapin, I was determined to get some pictures. Lying on the ground allowed me to get some close-up shots, with this one being my favorite.”
August 2006, Week 4
Frank Virga
“The proximity of the deep, sub-oceanic, Monterey Canyon to the Central California Coast provides up welling currents rich in nutrients.” explains Frank Virga. “The cool water of the Japanese current creates a marine environment that contributes to the diversity”. Feeding on the kelp canopy above him, he spotted this Blue-ring top snail. Struggling against the surge and current, the veterinarian from Bakersfield, California used his Olympus 4000 to capture this image.
August 2006, Week 3
Laura Romin
One evening in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, Laura Romin & Larry Dalton saw this cheetah couple displaying breeding behavior and began observing. “We captured the pair in the sunset after watching them for a few hours, ” says Romin, wildlife biologist from Draper, Utah. The changing sunlight created a dramatic glow, which, as she describes, “presents the feeling of serenity and wildlife splendor found on the Serengeti plains. ”She used a Nikon F5 with a 500mm lens.
August 2006, Week 2
Arthur Peslak
“In order to get nice images of shorebirds, you can’t be afraid to get down and dirty in the mud or sand at the birds eye level, ” says Peslak, patent attorney from Freehold, New Jersey. Out looking for the early birds, he came across this American oystercatcher feeding on shellfish that washed ashore in Sandy Hook, New Jersey. Kneeling down in the sand, Peslak used his Canon 1D with a 500mm lens to capture this bird with its morning breakfast.
August 2006, Week 1
Benjamin Ho
The unique landscape of Coyote Buttes Wilderness Area photographed alone can offer a surreal abstractness, but including another photographer in the frame allows scale perspective as Benjamin Ho prepares his camera for the shot from top of the bowl. “This image lends symmetry in an area that can be difficult to capture, ” says the Software Quality Assurance Engineer from Long Beach, California. He used his Sony F707 to make this image.
July 2006, Week 4
Lisa Blais
On a fall hike with friends and family at the Flume Gorge nature trail in New Hampshire, Lisa Blais discovered an old shaded stump covered in mushrooms. “ Mushrooms were growing out of this stump at the top of the gorge, ” says Blais. She captured this macro photograph using her Sony DSC-F828 with a 28-200mm lens.